Are you a wine or tourist organization interested in creating or updating your regional wine map? A detailed map featuring wineries and vineyards within a particular region is an indispensable communication and marketing tool. This holds especially true for organizations that promote and endorse wine regions across the United States recognized as American Viticultural Areas (AVA).
The significance of capturing a place’s essence resonates strongly with wine enthusiasts and industry experts. These maps serve as visual representations of the grapes’ geographical origins and the wine’s production sites.
My involvement in updating the Petaluma Gap Wine Growers Association (PGWA) map recently led to some important insight on the process. The previous blog post introduced a Google MyMap as a temporary measure or placeholder. This post will delve into some valuable lessons from creating the actual Petaluma Gap AVA map.
Defining the Map’s Purpose
The first step in creating a map is defining its purpose. Our primary aim was to offer wine consumers and industry professionals comprehensive information in a visually appealing way. For wine enthusiasts, we charted the wineries and tasting rooms within the Petaluma Gap AVA and listed the wineries outside the boundary that source Petaluma Gap AVA grapes. In mapping the vineyards, we visually represented where the grapes were grown for Petaluma Gap labeled wines. Since the PGWA boasts more grape growers than winemakers, the map needed to be useful as a communication tool within the industry, such as winemakers sourcing grapes. This meant adding grape varieties and contact details.
Time-Consuming Nature of Data Collection
Keep in mind that the data collection will take time. Without a comprehensive and up-to-date public directory or database for wineries and growers, the data collection can take several months. While information about wineries was accessible through their online presence, gathering details on vineyards without wineries posed more challenges. For PGWA members, we followed up and sought confirmation of data collected during their annual membership process, including acreage and grape varieties. Non-member vineyards were updated by extensive online sleuthing, encompassing state and federal websites, public directories and maps, and outreach within the local wine industry.
Distinguishing Vineyards from Wineries
The differences between vineyards and wineries became more apparent as the project unfolded. Wineries predominately cater to consumers, making location and website information on the map important. In contrast, growers are more focused on the wine industry and communicate with other wine professionals. Spotlighting the grape varieties on the map and creating opportunities for grape purchasing interactions was important to growers. For precision, we employed vineyard latitude and longitude instead of addresses. Addresses were often used for offices, not the vineyard. We also used different icons to differentiate between PGWA members and non-members.
Exploring Diverse Mapping Designs
In reviewing other AVA maps, we found many different types of maps and tools to make them, from simple graphical representations to detailed three-dimensional maps with parcel boundaries of each vineyard. For Cheryl Quist, the Executive Director of the PGWA and the visionary behind the maps, the medium was important. “We’ve long heard from our winemakers that they want to be able to show consumers where their grapes come from, and we also know our growers want to connect with winemakers in search of Petaluma Gap grown grapes. We engaged with Vinitacora, an organization with experience in wine maps and guides, to design the map. Our final design included two formats – one flat for wineries and growers, and one folded for consumers.”
Significance of AVA Maps
The Petaluma Gap AVA Map was released at the annual Wind to Wine festival hosted by the PGWA. At this event, 29 wineries showcased their wines and engaged with over 300 attendees, including consumers and professionals. The laminated 8 x 12 map version served as a valuable tool, enabling wineries to discuss the source of the grapes with attendees at their table while pouring the wine. The poster version of the map was used at some of the wine industry presentations at the event. After the event, wineries walked away with folded maps for their tasting rooms. The media and other wine professionals picked the folded map as a valuable resource for learning about Petaluma Gap wines.
There are many different types and ways to make these wine maps, and many professionals create them. These professionals have experience with geographic information systems applications or graphic design, often both. Either way, these lessons will help create regional wine maps. As a Petaluma Gap Winegrowers Alliance marketing committee member, my contribution to this map project included data compilation and research support.
